The power of nature

Confessions of a realistic pollyanna

Growing up on the prairies of Canada, I used to enjoy thunderstorms as they build up. The air would get so still and heavy. You could see the dark clouds gathering in the west. The birds would stop singing as they seemed to be holding up in their nest. You would see flashes of thunder on the horizon. Then you would hear a few rumbles of thunder in the distance. Everything seemed just on the tipping point. Then the wind would start to blow as the thunderstorm made its way to where we were. The storm quite often lasted only a few minutes and then it would be gone. However we would be reminded of the powers of nature.

I lived for a number of years in an earthquake zone. Vancouver has been told for years that the big one is coming. Yet in the years I lived there, I only felt one small tremor. Toronto also lives in an area of some seismic activity. In the years I lived there we just had two small tremors- one I felt, the other one I didn't. Yet one only has to look at pictures of Italy from a month or so ago to see the devastation that nature can play in the forms of earthquakes.

I have been to New Orleans once and Houston a few times. I went to New Orleans 10 years before Hurricane Katrina hit. I found it to be a vibrant city with so much going on. I was amazed at the expansive of Houston the times I have been there. It seems to be ribbons of concrete stretching as far as the eye can see. But nature has shown that our cities are no match for its fury.

We like to think we are in control. We build huge buildings. We build bridges. We dominate so much of the creation. However events like Hurricane Harvey and the coming of Hurricane Irma remind us that we are not in control. We are quite helpless when it comes down to it. The world is not ours to rule over- the world is a powerful force that lets us to be a part of it. We need to treat our world with respect because if we don't, the world will prove to us that it is more power than we are. Some people might deny climate change- some might say that these things are just part of the cycle of things. But the fact is if we don't realise we are not the rulers of the universe, the world will continue to prove that it is stronger and we will continue to pay for our ignorance. Blessings.